Crawling Through the Shadows
by Cewkie-chan
Summary: An epic story of huge events within the Seretei. An undead Orihime, a resurrected Ulquiorra, and a pregnant Rukia. What will become of this and what tragedies will occur along the way?
1. A Sad Story Begins

**Chapter 1: In which our sad story begins**

_**Hello peoples! This is for my best friend, Ele! She wrote this and I want to honor her by showing you!**_

Chapter One: A New Battle Unfolds

"One day your life is going to flash before your eyes. Make it worth watching."

~Unknown

A dark shadow slowly crept its way across the Seretei. Cold winds began blowing through and Hell Butterflies fluttered in every direction. Something dangerous was coming to the Soul

Society.

A girl with raven black hair and deep violet eyes stared into the grey clouds as the winds ruffled her black kimono. A hand rested on her shoulder and she looked up to see a tall orange

haired teenager standing behind her. He had kind brown eyes and wore a long white haori.

"Ichigo…" she mouthed quietly looking at him with worried eyes.

He returned her worried glance and kissed her lightly on the forehead. He rested his large strong hand on her growing stomach and smiled.

"Let's get inside were its safe," he said gently.

"But…what if my squad needs me?" she said barely above a whisper.

"Don't worry about that, Rukia. All you need to worry about is yourself and the baby," he said grasping her hand and guiding her inside.

She sat down on a small straw mat in a warm candle lit room. The orange-haired boy held her hands in his and kissed her fingertips.

"It's going to be fine," he whispered into her ear softly.

She looked at him doubtfully.

"But what if-" but he cut her off by pressing his warm lips against hers.

"It'll be fine," he said letting go of her and standing up.

"See ya in a few," he said as he walks out the door.

The girl stared at his shrinking figure. He seemed so sure as if nothing could go wrong. Tears welled in her eyes as he disappeared amongst the darkness. Her hero was leaving once

again to fight, but what if he didn't return? She placed her hands on her swelling belly. What if the baby would be born without a father?

Tears began to flow down her cheeks as she imagined looking into the dead eyes of her lover. They had gotten so close, would today be the time his luck finally ran out?

Meanwhile, the orange-haired teenager sped towards the battlegrounds where his fellow captains waited in anticipation for the upcoming battle.

"What did I miss?" he asked a short white haired boy wearing a similar white haori.

"Kurotsuchi-Taicho is creating a shield around Soul Society," said the short captain.

"How long will it be able to keep them off?" asked the orange-haired teenager.

"About five minutes," replied the short captain.

The orange-haired teenager nodded and looked into the sky.

"How many do you think there will be?" he asked.

"Depends," said the short captain seeming to ask himself the same thing.

Suddenly, a loud ripping sound echoed towards the Seretei. The orange-haired teenager's eyes widened as he saw the huge Garganta rip opening up in the sky.

"They're coming," he breathed as bells began to clang loudly in warning.

"Prepare yourself for battle!" cried the captain-commander as strong winds began to build.

The orange-haired teenager drew his sword and grasped it firmly in his hands. He looked up at the Garganta rip. It was by far the largest he had seen.

The other captain's joined him with their swords raised. They all tensed as the strong riatsu reverberated in the air. There was a loud screech as the first beast emerged from the huge

rip. It was a gargantuan bulbous creature with a single, large, vacant eye. A small boy with purple eyes, blonde hair, and a white tiara-like mask stepped out with it wearing a blank

expression.

The orange-haired teenager scowled. That was Wonderweiss Margera and his "pet" Fura.

"Uwaaa!" cried Wonderweiss pointing a finger down at the captain's.

The large beast, Fura, looked at them with his white eye. The orange-haired teenager gasped as the beast opened its large mouth with a groan. A strange black liquid poured out and

morphed into several tall, black figures wearing white masks.

"BANKAI!" cried the teenager loudly. With that his sword elongated and his robes changes to become tighter and more ragged at the ends.

"Let's fight!" he cried as he began to hack at the black figures.

The other captain's joined him, finishing of the figures with ease. Wonderweiss sticks out his lower lip and moans something inaudible, but that seemed almost a queue as several human

like figures leaped through the rip in the sky. The orange-haired teenager stared in horror as the figures sped towards him and his fellow captains.

"Hello Kurosaki," muses a soft voice.

The teenager looked up in shock at a tall figure dressed in all white. His brown hair was slicked back and he wore a slim smirk on his narrow face.

"How are you today? It's been quite some time," he says as his two accomplices, Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tosen, stepped in next to him.

"Ahh Kurosaki-kun!" called Gin with his snakelike smile, "How exciting!"

The orange-haired teenager gripped his sword tightly and black riatsu wafted around him as his rage increase.

"Aizen…" he whispered through clenched teeth.

"Nice to know you remember my name," says Aizen smiling, "I'm sure you'll remember my espada as well."

With that nine figures surrounded him, each with a very different appearance and ability. The teenager toke a stance, prepared to fight them all if he must.

"You think you can take on all of us!" laughed a tall, slim figure that held a long staff with two crescent shaped blades at the end.

"I will if I must," said the teenager.

"Interesting," says Aizen, "Ulquiorra… you haven't had a good fight in a while."

The teenager's eyes quickly glared at a pale green-eyed male who had a strange whit mask that covered most of the left side of his face. The teenager's eyes narrowed as the pale

figure returned his gaze.

"Are you asking me to battle the trash?" questions the pale figure, Ulquiorra.

"Yes," says Aizen grinning.

"As you command," says Ulquiorra drawing his long silver blade.

The two glared at each other, both waiting for the other to strike. Then, their swords clashed. Sparks flew as the clanged against each other repeatedly. Out of the corners of his eye,

the teenager could see the other espada being sent out by Aizen to occupy the other captains. The teenager growled and looked at his opponent.

"You BASTARD!" he yelled sending black riatsu flying.

Ulquiorra's eyes widened as his hair was singed b the flying riatsu.

"YOU KILLED HER!" the teenager continued yelling.

He brought down his sword and clipped Ulquiorra's shoulder, staining his white cloak crimson.

"YOU KILLED ORIHIME!"

FLASH BACK

The strawberry-blonde girl, Orihime, reached out her hands as the figure before her began to fade away. He reached out to touch her in return, but as she was about to grasp his hand it

too disappeared. Silent tears slid down her face as the figure faded away into nothing.

She fell to her knees and turned to look at her savior, the one who had killed the one she loved. She knew he had meant well, the one he had killed had been the enemy but… but….

"Kurosaki-kun…" she sobbed with her head held in her hands.

"I'm sorry Inoue," the orange-haired teenager whispered. He could not think of any words to comfort her.

He toke a sideways glance at his friend, Ishida, whom he had accidentally wounded in the battle.

"Inoue…" he whispers.

"Yes," she responds softly looking up.

"I have to go…save Rukia and the others. Would you please…stay here and heal Ishida? You'll be safe here," he says staring at his feet as he spoke.

She looked at him quizzically but nodded. He nodded in return and then bounded off towards his other companions…to another battle.

Orihime crawled toward her injured friend and looked at his wound carefully. It was in the center of his stomach. By now he had passed out from blood loss.

"Soten Kisshun, I reject," she whispers softly as a light golden shield surrounded Ishida's body.

Orihime watched as the wound slowly resealed itself. It was fully healed within minutes.

The golden shield faded as she released her spell. She looked over her spot were her love had last stood…where Ulquiorra had stood.

She slowly made her way there. She placed her hands on the cold ground and looked up into the black sky.

"Ulqui-" she gagged on her words, unable to speak. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she grasped the crumbled rock in her shacking fingers.

"Soten K-k—"she choked, unable to even summon her powers of healing.

She knew any attempts would be useless. He was gone and there was nothing left for her to heal.

She stretched her hands to the sky as if she might be able to catch some part of him floating above her. She cried…and cried. Then, she suddenly stopped. She felt a strange warm

feeling fill her being.

"Ulquiorra?" she asked blinking away the tears in her eyes.

"Ori….hime…" she heard a soft distant voice call out.

She felt something press lightly against her cheek. She put her hand to her face and grasped something that felt like a cold hand.

"Is that you?" she asked gripping the hand tighter, she didn't want him to go away again.

"I can't…stay…long…" the voice says softer now.

"No, No! NO! DON'T GO!" she screams as the hand began to pull away.

"SONTEN KISSHUN! I REJECT!" she screamed letting out her power at its full strength.

Golden strands of riatsu began to fly through the air. They wrapped themselves around an invisible being in the air. Her hands gripped at the air as she tried desperately to find the rest

of Ulquiorra, to bring him closer to her so that she may hold him and never let go.

Tears of joy filled her eyes as the pale face of her love began to become clear in the black air above her.

"Ulquiorra!" she cheered cupping his face in her shaking hands.

"Orihime," he whispered as a small smile pulled at his lips, but it vanished in an instant.

His eyes widened and his mouth opened in a bloodcurdling scream. Black and green riatsu began to ooze from his body as more and more became solid.

Orihime yelped as the riatsu bit at her delicate flesh. She held up her hands to protect her face.

"Stop it," she yelped as the riatsu dug deeper and deeper.

"STOP IT!"

The orange-haired teenager sliced easily through the large espada who had been attacking his friends. The beast now laid bloody and unconscious on the sandy desert floor. The

teenager wiped a trail of sweat of his forehead and turned toward his companions.

The raven-haired girl, Rukia, smiled at him with her cut and bleeding face.

"You're getting stronger," she says, intending to compliment him.

"I have to if it means keeping you safe," he returns smiling back.

"STOP IT!"

The teenager and the raven haired girl turn at the unexpected outburst. The teenager's eyes widened as he realized the source of the screaming. Something was happening on the

tower where he had left Orihime.

"Stay here, Rukia. I'm going to find Orihime," the teenager calls as he bounds off towards the tower.

Orihime screamed in pain as the riatsu cut into her skin and ripped at her body. She felt her muscle being pulled away from the bone as her blood spilt around her. Her eyes filled with

tears as she say her love only feet away from her. He was the source of her pain. She continued to scream. Through her tear filled eyes she saw the orange-haired teenager looking at

her with horrified eyes. She watched helplessly as he tried in vain to free her from the riatsu that entangled and tortured her.

"KUROSAKI-KUN!" she cried.

The riatsu ten thrashed her against her face and she fell to the ground, too weak to fight against the pain any longer. She gave into the black and green riatsu allowing it to rip her

apart.

"INOUE!" the orange-haired boy cried as he brought down his sword trying to break through the riatsu fortress that she was trapped in.

His attempts were all useless. He watched as the strawberry-blonde was mercilessly ripped to shreds. The black and green riatsu did not settle for what felt like ages. When it finally

settled, the orange-haired teenager rushed to the side of the torn girl. She was totally crimson with blood and every part of her body was marred and torn.

"Inoue… "he whispered holding the corpse in his shaking arms.

He looked up at the pale figure only meters away. It was Ulquiorra. Orihime had healed him, but at such costs. His clothes were torn and he looked confused and afraid. He looked at

his hands with amazement and then back at the teenager.

"She brought me back?" he asked feeling his face.

"YES! AND YOU KILLED HER! YOU KILLED HER!" the teenager yelled, his eyes ablaze.

He had never had a romantic relationship with the girl, but he had gone to great lengths to save her. They were close and she had never done anything to deserve such a horrid death.

Ulquiorra's eyes widened as he realized who the girl in the teenager's arms was. He stretched out his hand to stroke her bloody hair but the teenager stuck out his sword. Ulquiorra

gasped as he felt the sword's tip brush against his neck.

"Don't. Touch. Her." breathed the teenager, "Don't try to fight me. I can feel how weak your riatsu is. You would lose."

Ulquiorra stared in horror. The sight of the girl's marred body made him sick.

"Orihime…" he whispered.

The teenager glared at him as he slowly backed away. The figure huddled at the edge of the tower silently, tears brimming in his eyes.

At that moment, the raven-haired girl appeared at the teenager's side. Ulquiorra heard her scream as she saw Orihime's dead body. He watched her place a comforting hand on the

teenager's shoulder.

"She's dead, there's nothing we can do," she whispered as she began to sniffle.

The teenager gripped the body tighter and yelled into the open air. He then finally allowed himself to cry.

"We must go, Ichigo," Rukia whispers crying, "The Soul Society needs us."

The teenager nods and lays the girls dead body down gently. With a piece of his robe he gently wiped off the blood on the girl's face. Fresh cuts still marred her cheeks and forehead but

she looked a little more peaceful.

The two bounded off leaving the dead girl, her hands crossed across her pierced chest. Ulquiorra crawled silently towards her and began stroking her long hair.

"I'm sorry…" he whispered allowing the tears to fall lightly on the dead girl's face.

_**How was it? Teehee! Awesome, right?**_


	2. The Sad Story Ends?

**Chapter Two: The Battle Pursues**

_"Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die tomorrow."_  
><em>~Unknown<em>

Ulquiorra froze for a second as the memory washed over him. This left him vulnerable for attack. The orange-haired teenager, Ichigo, lunged towards him and pierced his arm with his long

blade. Ulquiorra bit back a yelp but he quickly fought back sending his own sword into Ichigo's calf.

Ichigo winced in pain. He swung his fist at Ulquiorra's head. Ulquiorra did a quick Sonido and avoided the lethal punch. They both glared at each other, sword's raised.

"You've gotten stronger still, Kurosaki Ichigo," says Ulquiorra staring at Ichigo's glinting sword.

Ichigo sneered and lifted his sword preparing to strike again.

"I have as well," says Ulquiorra lifting up his own sword.

"Bind," he calls," Murciélago!"

Ichigo watched as two black wings sprouted from Ulquiorra's back. Ichigo had seen Ulquiorra's release only once before, when he had nearly killed him. As the transformation progressed,

Ichigo noticed something shocking. It was not his first release, but his second more powerful release. Two white horns sprouted from his head and black fur covered him from the waist

down. His usual tear marks had grown broader and the whites of his eyes were now black.

"Bring out your hollow mask, Kurosaki," demanded Ulquiorra.

Ichigo did not hesitate to do so. A new red and white mask covered his face making him look more like a hollow that a shinigami…more like the enemy.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" he cried sending a wave of black riatsu zooming toward Ulquiorra.

Ulquiorra blocked it simply by holding out his hand. The riatsu flew around him like water would flow around a rock in a stream.

"I expected better from you Kurosaki," says Ulquiorra as he raised his arms in front of him, "Now it's my turn."

"Lanza del Relámpago!" he cries summoning a glowing javelin-like object composed of his own riatsu.

With a swift motion he sends the projectile flying towards Ichigo who bonds away. The javelin misses him by only inches and hits a building below causing a massive explosion.

Ichigo kept in motion as Ulquiorra continued throwing the projectiles at him. Sweat began to sting his eyes as his breath became deeper and more frequent. He wasn't sure how long he

could keep this up. He had not been in his hollow form for such a long span of time for several years and the strain was becoming hard.

"Getsuga Tenshou!" Ichigo yelled sending a fresh wave of black riatsu hurtling towards Ulquiorra.

Ulquiorra deflected the attack again with ease.

"You're going to have to do better than that to-" Ulquiorra stopped in mid-sentence when he noticed that Ichigo had vanished. His eyes searched for him but he could find nothing.

"Gotcha."

Ulquiorra felt Ichigo's sword piece his left shoulder, slicing through skin muscle, and bone alike.

Ulquiorra felt the warm blood flow down his chest as the sword severed his flesh.

"How inconvenient," murmured Ulquiorra looking behind him at the smirking Ichigo.

"That ended all too quickly."

Suddenly, Ichigo felt something strange. Everything was black and silent. He could still feel his sword in his hands, but he could not see it. He didn't feel as if he was connected to the

world properly.

He gasped as a strange force pulled his wrists behind his back making him release his sword. He struggled to free his hands but the invisible restraints only grew tighter. He then felt

something encompass his neck. It was tight and Ichigo struggled to breath.

'What's going on?' he thought to himself.

Ichigo! Cried a familiar voice.

'Old man Zangetsu?' Ichigo asked inside his head.

Ichigo, yes it's me! Hurry you need to free yourself now before it's too late! 'How?' Ichigo asked, but the voice was silent.

Then, he was back to the world around him and the first thing he saw was Aizen's laughing face.

"Finally! Kurosaki Ichigo has been captured!" he called triumphantly.

Ichigo looked at his hands which were held tightly behind his back. They were being held together by a glowing golden substance. It looked so familiar.

"Huh. Ichigo, if only you knew how weak you were, you fell under her spell only too easily," Aizen said waving his finger back and forth.

"What?" Ichigo questioned staring at him.

"It was all fake! That battle with Ulquiorra, how interesting! You managed to defeat him that easily, almost too good to be true it seems, I wonder why that is! Maybe, because, that's just

the case," Aizen said grinning evilly.

"What are you saying?" Ichigo asked confused as he tried to break the restraints with no success.

"Poor, poor Ichigo. Why it was all an illusion. I have my little helper here to credit for it," says Aizen as a figure emerged from behind him.

Ichigo's eyes widened as he gazed at the sight before him. It was Orihime! It was the same strawberry-blonde hair and purple eyes, but something was different. They now looked dead

and her hairpins had turned a new shade of black.

Ichigo didn't know what to feel. Inoue was alive!

"Inoue!" he cried but the strange invisible thing around his neck tightened causing him to choke and gasp for breath.

"Don't say that name," the girl growled.

Ichigo jumped at her voice. I was distorted, almost other worldly, very unlike the voice she had had so many years before. It was then that Ichigo noticed the true difference in Orihime's

appearance. The air around her seemed to shift as her face began to drastically change. The left side of her face was marred by a white mask and her left eyes was totally black. The side

remained the same seeming to mock Ichigo with the memory of Orihime's past self.

"You see, Inoue is not the sweet little girl you remember anymore Ichigo," hisses Aizen. "That night so many years ago, Inoue did in fact die, but I brought her back. I brought her back a

new stronger being. She is now one of my arrancar army and an expert in the art of illusions."

Her dead eyes gazed at Ichigo's horrified face.

"Do you want me to kill him Aizen?" she asks as the invisible constricting force on Ichigo's neck tightened.

"Tell him something nice before he dies," says Aizen smiling and staring coldly and the struggling Ichigo.

Orihime was silent. She closed her eyes and was thoughtful for a few moments. When she opened them, Ichigo gasped to see that her irises were gone, replaced with a small image.

Ichigo squinted to see what it was and held back tears as he saw what it was. His pregnant wife, Rukia, sat in the large candle lit room humming softly as she rubbed her swelling belly.

"Your wife loves you," says Orihime softly," And the babies a girl."

With that there was a sickening snap and blood seeped from Ichigo's cut neck.

"Eww," said Gin softly to himself seeing the dead body of Ichigo go limp.

"He had a quite painless death," said Orihime as the restraints on Ichigo's neck and wrists were released. She watched at his body plummeted down to the ground.

"Let's go before any of the other captains figure out he's dead," suggests Tousen.

The others nod. With a snap of his fingers, Aizen summons his minions and the all retreated back to their palace, Las Noches.

**End of Chapter Two**


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